Highlights of the 2016 AQS QuiltWeek in Phoenix, Arizona / 1

The 2016 AQS QuiltWeek in Phoenix, Arizona was one of the best shows ever!  With hundreds of beautiful quilts and some very special exhibits, there was plenty of eye candy to fill our memory sticks.  Over the next few weeks we'll be sharing photos of our favorite quilts from the show.
Please note: We're continually posting free patterns on Twitter ! Check us out @quiltinspire.

Yellow Sky, 58 x 42", by Shirley Gisi (Colorado Springs, Colorado)

Since the show was in Arizona, it seems perfect to lead off with this Southwestern abstract landscape with its angular cliffs and art deco clouds.  Visually and technically stunning, Yellow Sky was awarded the blue ribbon in the Wall Quilts-Landscape category.  The description says, "The Southwest theme offers an opportunity to use vivid colors which Shirley loves." The angular cliffs reminds us very much of the style of the renowned Arizona painter, Ed Mell.

A Passion for Purple, 37 x 32", by Andrea Brokenshire (Round Rock, Texas)

A Passion for Purple was the second-place winner in the Wall Quilts - Landscape category. Andrea Brokenshire specializes in appliquéd botanical quilts, and her work is photorealistic, larger-than-life, and simply luminous.  It is nearly impossible to tell that this flower is made with pieces of fabric.  We took several close-up photos to show the way in which Andrea creates texture through quilting. 

Look to the West, 41 x 51", by Leah Gravells (Edmonton, Alberta, Canada)

The colors of the sunset inspired Look to the West, which  drew a crowd of admirers, all debating how the quilt was made.  It turns out that Leah blended two hundred 3/4" strips to create this original design.  She used the quilt-as-you-go technique to piece the strips, which were absolutely, perfectly, straight.

Leah says, "The prairie earth is reflecting the colors in dot batik fabrics... look closely to see all the dots." The dots make the quilt almost shimmer from a distance.

My Brunette Whig, 87 x 87", by Gail Stepanek and Jan Hutchison (New Lenox, Illinois)

My Brunette Whig, which was entered in the Large Quilts - Longarm Machine Quilted category, won BEST OF SHOW.  This quilt is made of Whig Rose blocks on a brown background, so Gail named it, 'My Brunette Whig'.  As you might expect, this quilt is perfectly executed in every way - design, applique, and quilting. Thanks to some excellent lighting at the show, Jan Hutchison's award-winning quilting really stands out on the dark background.

On her blog, Jan Hutchison explains that My Brunette Whig was quilted with several colors of Wonderfil metallic thread; dark brown, copper and red. She also used Superior So Fine and Aurifil threads.

Kiku, 53 x 67",  by Sandy Clark (Fresno, California)

Kiku was awarded Third Place in the Wall Quilts - Longarm Machine Quilted category. Sandy Clark found this technique in the book Tile Quilt Revival: Reinventing a Forgotton Form by Carol Gilham Jones and Bobbi Finley.  The scalloped border echoes the rounded shapes of the applique pieces.

Sandy quilted this beauty with overlapping circles reminiscent of a double wedding ring, then filled the circles with feathers, bubbles and arcs. Even the small spaces between the applique pieces were quilted, and crystals were added for sparkle.

September, 34 x 44", by Cindy Seitz-Krug

Cindy Seitz-Krug was the featured artist at the show, and the extent of her mastery was evident in the many quilts shown in the special exhibit.  This quilt really drew our eye with its realistic depiction of an elk.  Cindy says, "Anyone who knows me knows that I am passionate about elk. I used Melinda Bula's fusible applique technique to create this magnificent bull. There are approximately 100 different fabrics in this quilt."

On her website, Quintessential Quilting, Cindy explains that making the quilt even more beautiful through quilting is the part she enjoys most. "I quilt all of my quilts on a Bernina 440 QE."

Come a little closer, and you can see that the thread painting on the elk was done in various shades of brown and beige that both matched and blended the underlying applique shapes with each other...

Quilted spirals in the sky remind us of the September winds that herald the coming autumn...

Image credits:  Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration.  Stay tuned for more quilts from the 2016 AQS Quilt Week!

Road to California 2014: Part 3

We saw quilts in so many different categories of styles, colors, and quilting patterns at the Road to California Quilt Show ! Here are some more highlights of the show which we thought you'd enjoy. 

Mother Earth, A Combination of Mother Mary, Quan Yin and Mom by Julie Duschack, Denmark, Wisconsin. Category: Human Image Art Quilts

Of her original design, Julie writes, "Mother Nature is a Mom. My Mom, to be exact. Geraldine Shelhamer lives in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin, when she's not creating more universes. She enjoys gardening, quilting, and her dog, Suki. You know, Mother Nature stuff."

Many components of Julie's quilt are symbols for revered feminine mythical or spiritual figures of the world.  For example, to symbolize Mother Nature, Julie has attired her mom in an apron and garden clogs, with plants and the earth at her feet. To symbolize Mother Mary, Julie has added a halo around her mom's head.  To symbolize Quan Yin, the Buddhist god of compassion, Julie has added a lotus blossom at the bottom of the quilt. She also depicts her mother as a juggler, because mothers are constantly multi-tasking and juggling their time, energy, and tasks.

Autumn Whirlpool by Bobbie Moon , Altadena, California. Category: Abstract Art

Bobbie says, "Using techniques learned from Carol Bryer-Fallert, this quilt is entirely appliqued. My mathematics background and the beautiful fabrics called to me to create this leafy spiral."

In our opinion, Bobbie has used a beautiful  split complementary color scheme of soft peach and coral pink shades, accented with blues, greens, and grape tones. The softly waving form create an interesting watercolor magical effect, borne out by the circular motifs coalescing into the spiral's center.

Day/Night, 48 x 46”, by Sandy Curran, Newport News, Virginia
Category: Art Naturescape

Sandy writes, "There exists in the world the phenomenon of opposing forces: good/evil;  love/hate; hot/cold; soft/hard; public/private; day and night. The flower blooms in the brilliance of day and the darkness of night. We live in a public day and hide in a private night."

Close up, Day/Night by Sandy Curran

Sandy's work is machine appliqued, hand-beaded, and quilted by the artist. In this close-up, you can see some of the pretty beads in the center of the flower and some of Sandy's very artistic quilting patterns.

Second Encounter by Shirley Gisi,  Colorado Springs, Colorado. Category: Art Abstract

Winner of $1000.00 for Best Use of Color, Shirley notes, "This is inspired by mid-century abstract paintings. I aimed for a look of transparency in layering geometric shapes. It is primarily pieced with some applique. "

Close up, Second Encounter by Shirley Gisi

This quilt is done in cloth, but Shirley makes it look like a painting with color overlays by cleverly using pieces of shaded fabric. The fabric seems to pick up the tones of the colors that would be underneath, if this work were a painting. We love the beautiful ice-cream sherbert pastel tints that Shirley has selected for her original design.

Blast from the Past by Kim Bruny, Apple Valley, California. Category:  Innovative Applique

First Place winner in the Innovative Applique category, Kim writes,  "I love how the focal fabric in this quilt reminds me of my childhood. [There are] bright colors, circular designs, and paisley prints. This quilt is machine appliqued with 34 different colors and over 3,500 crystal embellishments. My hope is the bright color pallete will remind everyone of the happy and enjoyable times they have had in their life.

Cheery oranges, sunny yellows, and lively purples give this quilt a dynamic, irrepressible personality. It's so much fun to look at, that we feel that the artist must have had a very fun time in creating it. Kim's design is based on the book, Tile Quilt Revival by Carol Gilham Jones and Bobbi Finley.

Ambrosia by Gina Perkes, Payson, Arizona. Category: Special Faculty

Gina notes, "This quilt was inspired by a duvet cover in a Pottery Barn catalog. I utilized many machine techniques including applique by bobbin, piping, foundation piecing, and many more."

Close up, Ambrosia by Gina Perkes

In this close-up, you can see the fabulous machine quilting which was done by the artist. We loved the fanciful, elegant detail on the butterflies in each corner of the quilt, which reminded us of a scene from an enchanted setting in nature. Also, can you see the quilted dragonfly in the white area?  Gina's original design incorporates hand dyed fabric, which was pieced and appliqued.

Image credits:  Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration.

More fabulous quilts from Houston !

We loved every minute of the Houston International Quilt Festival, where fabulous quilts were in abundance ! Here are some more of our favorite show-stoppers.

Bohemian II : Ferris Wheels and Kites by Sandra Peterson, Muncie, Indiana

First place winner in the Innovative Pieced category, Sandra notes, "This quilt is the second in the "Bohemian" series. The original designs of "fractal wheels" in the series are hand crafted. Fabrics in multiple colors and unrelated patterns are used to carry out the Bohemian theme. The titles in the series are all inspired by summer, first fireworks, and now, Ferris wheels and kites."

Close-up Bohemian II : Ferris Wheels and Kites by Sandra Peterson

The lovely complementary colors give so much sparkle to the center medallion, in our opinion. Sandra's techniques include machine piecing, foundation piecing, and hand quilting with cotton thread on cotton fabrics, and Warm and Natural cotton batting.

Septem Peccata Mortalia (Seven Deadly Sins) by Christine Alexiou, Ontario, Canada

Winner of the $7,500 World of Beauty award, this original design is just one of three separate quilts which Christine created and then bound to make a quilted book.  Each "page" depicts a different sin. The artist writes, "Although inspired by illuminated manuscripts, the theme tackles how little human nature has changed since these manuscripts were first created. I wanted to explore how these seven failings speak to... human nature; why we are, in all our seeming morality, still guilty of these sins." For materials, Christine used cotton, silk, synthetics, fabric paint, Pigma Micron pens, Warm and Natural batting, fusible interfacing, Misty Fuse, Superior silk and metallic threads, and cotton, polyester, and rayon threads.

Close up, Septem Peccata Mortalia (Seven Deadly Sins) by Christine Alexiou

Christine says of her techniques, "Designs were painted on each panel and sandwiched together to make three quilts that were carefully matched and then quilted. Each was folded in half vertically and bound using traditional book-binding techniques." We really liked the elegant border and the detail of the lettering underneath the image.

Quilt Noir by Shirley Gisi (Colorado Springs, Colorado)

Winner of the $5,000 Pfaff Master Award for Machine Artistry, Shirley notes of her original design, "The inspiration for this quilt is mid [20th] century abstract art. It features ombre fabrics, which contribute to the shading effect, and polyester shantung for the rings to add a metallic sheen. It is done in muted tones and is entirely pieced. The quilting echoes the geometric shape of the pieces."

Close- up, Quilt Noir by Shirley Gisi

According to the white glove volunteer on duty,  the geometric quilting of the solid sections was done by stitching 1/8" apart. We loved the sense of luminosity provided by the darker and lighter values of the neutral fabric colors.

Catching Beauty by Sylvia Kaptein (Sijbekarspel, The Netherlands)

Sylvia notes, "Near the center of Berlin [Germany] is the Peacock Island, with beautiful peacocks. I have made them in cross stitch and applique, in one project. The peacock made of fabric embraces the cross stitch peacock. Two colorful birds, made of thread and fabric."

Close up, Catching Beauty by Sylvia Kaptein

An award winner at the 2013 Open European Quilting Championships, Sylvia used beautiful,  eye-catching shades of monochromatic blue to depict the bird's face, neck, and feathers.

Close up, Catching Beauty by Sylvia Kaptein

We enjoyed the pretty beading and threadwork on this beautiful quilt.

Image credits: Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration.